It's just Nu-man nature
Synthly the best ... Gary in our office
By MIKE JONES
IT'S almost 25 years since Gary Numan first topped the charts but now rock's most famous pilot is flying higher than ever - in a manner of speaking.
The Sugababes took their version of his hit Are Friends Electric? back to the No1 spot last month when they sampled it on their smash Freak Like Me.
And he's up for an Ivor Novello award after dance act Basement Jaxx lifted Gary's M.E. for Tomb Raider theme tune Where's Your Head At?
Better still, his greatest hits album Exposure is out on Monday (he's signing copies at HMV Oxford Circus the same day from 4pm) and his forthcoming single Rip is already No1 in the Kerrang charts two months before it is released.
Despite this, Gary took time out from his hectic schedule to visit the Sun Online office for a webchat.
And guess what, he even came the Tube way. And I'm not joking.
Anyway, read on to see what Gary had to say about Marilyn Manson, flying, The Sugababes, chatrooms and the car in which he feels safest of all.
Do de do de do do, do do do do ...
Gary, as next year marks the 25th anniversary of your first single release, do you have anything special planned to mark this momentous occasion? Also, did you envisage all that time ago that you would still be around and providing us with excellent entertainment past/present and future? Thanks for all you've done and good luck for the things you hope to achieve in the next few months.
Paul Irving
February 10 is the anniversary, so I'd like to do a show to celebrate it. Secondly, I had no idea in 1978 that it would last anything like as long as it has. The fact that things are going so well now - better than they have for the last 15 years - is also a massive surprise. During the late 1980s I was pretty much dead and buried career-wise in the eyes of the public.
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I have always thought you had more in common with Alice Cooper than David Bowie. How do you react to that, bearing in mind you are a major influence on Marilyn Manson, et al?
KK Galen
As Alice Cooper and David Bowie are both old enough to be my dad - no offence - I don't think I have much in common with either of them. Marilyn Manson said to me that he thought his Mechanical Animals album had a bit of Numan and a bit of Bowie - which I was quite proud of but I found it easier to spot the Bowie influence rather than mine.
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Gary, does all the recent interest in your music put more pressure on you to try and get your next album to be a commercial success?
David Ratcliffe, Prestwich
It doesn't put any pressure on me because I've stopped making albums for those reasons. I got stuck in the commercial-success-or-nothing trap during the 1980s and my music suffered as a result. My last three albums have been increasingly heavy, dark and radio-unfriendly and therefore have little chance of major success. I intend to continue in that direction with the next one and so don't expect any commercial success. I'm very happy with the music I'm making, I'm very happy with the way the career is going and it seems that other people are having commercial success for me - so I'm in an excellent position to be able to make the music I want to make. The only pressure I feel is to make an album better than the last one which was without doubt the best album I've ever made.
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I saw recently that your mum had her caravan pinched. Have you found it yet and do you like going caravaning yourself? There's a lovely site near Colwyn Bay in North Wales, I think you'd enjoy a week there. P.S., is it a two-berth or a four-berth?
Valerie, Northampton
They haven't but they've replaced it with an identical one.
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Who would you most like to work with?
Steve Anderson, Bath
Among my favourite bands is Nine Inch Nails and Trent Reznor suggested some time ago that we should work together at some point, that would be cool. I'm off to Amsterdam in the next few days to work with Junkie XL which I'm looking forward to. Outside of that I actually don't have the confidence to work easily with other people - I'm more aware of my lack of musical ability than any supposed talent I may have. That inhibits me greatly from working with other people most of the time.
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Gary, the first time I saw you was at The Great Warbirds Air Display at West Malling in '87 (good old days). Was your Texan Harvard the first you set your heart on? If not, what was?
Simon Morley, Leeds
It was the only one for sale at that time. It cost £18,000 which is less than your average mid-price family saloon these days, so I think I got a bargain.
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Are you proud of the fact you are still around unlike a lot of artists of the 1980s and the fact you are still pumping out fantastic tunes? Thanks Gary for the No1 entertainment over the years.
Richard (Numanme)
Yes. I think still being around now and having the success I'm having, not just via The Sugababes and others that have sampled or covered my songs but also the new single Rip being No1 on Kerrang, is great after having so many difficult years. Most of my career has also been without the support of major label which has made it even harder to stay around. So, yes, I'm very proud.
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Is it true you married your No1 fan - and do you still have women throwing themselves at you? I think you're well fit.
Suzanne, Bristol
I married Gemma five years ago in August and, no, women don't throw themselves at me at all.
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Just his type ... Gary tackles your questions
Gary, your new instrumental track Exposure has been doing the rounds as an MP3 on the web for the past week. I have read on various websites that this version wasn't authorised by you and isn't the one appearing on the forthcoming album. The fan reaction to this "unauthorised" track is extremely positive, would you now consider releasing this version too?
Rob Walker
Both myself and the people at Artful Records are completely unaware of any MP3 of Exposure and we can only assume that somebody has made an MP3 from a promo copy and has made it available. I've only made one version of it so any other version can't be mine. The version I've made is on the Exposure album. I'm pleased to hear the reaction has been extremely positive although it's simply a short instrumental taster of where I'm going with the new album.
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If someone else was to write your material for you, who would you choose and why? Would you ever consider making a record with producer Trevor Horn for example?
Brian Lyons, Greenford, Middlesex
I wouldn't be interested in working in the music business at all if I didn't write my own songs. Being a songwriter is what I see myself as, first and foremost. I met Trevor Horn recently. Nice man. Very clever, but probably not the right man for my music. I also enjoy producing myself and have produced or co-produced every album I've ever made.
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Are friends electric? Or do you prefer them to run on gas - or maybe solar power?
Danny, Glasgow
Whatever's the most reliable.
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Gary, what has been the most nervous moment of your career because I know when you first appeared on the Old Grey Whistle Test you had a lot of problems with the stage set. Would that be it or have you had any others?
Chris McGrath, Maidstone
Going on stage at the Reading Festival last year I was completely unable to speak for about 30 minutes beforehand.
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Is it true you went bankrupt in the mid 1980s?
Daniel Webster, Birmingham
I came very close to being bankrupt in the early 1990s - thankfully things are a bit better now.
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Do you have any thoughts on the fans who collect and trade "bootleg" (non-profit) recordings of your concerts on CDR and video?
Stevie Simkin, Winchester
I have no problem with bootlegs in general although I did hear once of somebody mass-producing huge numbers of a stolen copy of a new album before we had released it. I wasn't too keen on that.
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Hi Gary - Lennon & McCartney, Prince Roger Nelson, Marc Bolan and GARY NUMAN are the most talented and best songwriters on earth and in the universe.
Ingo, a big, big Gary Numan fan from Germany
Thanks very much - but I'm not sure I'd agree with that.
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Which car do you feel safest of all inside?
Johnny, Newcastle
I have a pick-up truck now. Very large, you sit very high and I feel very safe in that. I've also got a 200mph sportscar which also feels surprisngly safe actually because I'm surrounded by a roll cage and a full harness, etc. Safety comes more from how you drive than what you drive.
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Gary, before I start, your Pure album is superb - a very strong and uplifting experience. I can't wait for your next one. Onto the questions ... You seemed VERY nervous when performing on Graham Norton the other night. Was it because you were in front of an unknown audience who were not 100% Numanoids? Also, are your audience's reactions to your current music any different than they were back in the 1980s? That's it. Fingers crossed I will get to see you in concert in September (Anywhere near Milton Keynes would be great). Keep up the fantastic music and website.
Vinny Mainolfi, Milton Keynes - a Numanoid from the 70s to NOW!
Graham Norton - yes very nervous initially. I'm very aware that there are many things in my past which he could have made fun of and I was terrified as to what he'd come up with. But it was good fun and I think I got off very lightly. I'm looking more and more these days for the audience to be as actively involved in the concert as we are on stage. Lots of movement, lots of noise and, dare I say it, even moshing. It's getting better and more exciting each time we play live.
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A right Gary-on ... did he answer your question?
What do you think of your fans?
Pete, Leicester
In a very real sense, my entire life and lifestyle is mine to enjoy because of the fans. I never forget that and I am always grateful. That's why I always sign everything that's asked of me. It's why I never rush past fans after shows. I always stop and chat to people and, in general, try to make sure that anyone involved with Gary Numan treats them properly and with respect.
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Gary, how do you feel about Are Friends Electric? being done by The Sugababes? Does it offend you artistically?
Dominic DeSando, New Hampshire, U.S.
Not at all. It's very flattering to be covered or sampled by any other artist. I think it would be arrogant in the extreme to think otherwise. People's tastes in music are different and constantly changing so what you or I think is quality music may be horrendous to somebody else. Therefore who are we to judge? I thought the Sugababes vocal was very well done.
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I've been a fan since 1979 - bought all your records and gone to loads of concerts. What do you make of the various Internet fan sites that are in abundance and, in particular, the chatrooms. Do you ever read the chatrooms and, if so, do you ever take into consideration fans' views and opinions? Also on the Graham Norton show the other night, you said that The Sugababes song was better than your own Are Friend's Electric? Do you really mean this?
Tony James
On the very rare occasions I've been to a chatroom I've found them to be highly argumentative and a tad depressing. I have no interest in going to chatrooms any more and I don't think I will ever have one on my own nuworld site. However, I get plenty of opinions from fans via email and through the website and I always listen and take notice of what they say, although I don't always agree with it. As for The Sugababes, I actually do prefer their vocal to my original. I've never thought I could sing very well and I think they do.
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I've started listening to Nine Inch Nails in the last two years and I thought they did a great version of your song Metal. Is there a song of someone else's you'd like to do? Looking forward to seeing you perform live in Glasgow again.
Anthony Quinn
In all honesty I would never have the front to cover any of the songs that I like of other people, so no.
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Why wait until July before you release Rip?
Sharon Cameron
It gives us another opportunity to gather more press interest which at the moment is directed mainly towards the Exposure album and The Sugababes. In these matters, I'm very much guided by the expertise of my record label.
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How long can you envisage yourself writing new albums and doing gigs?
Jenny, Erith
Writing albums - indefinitely, although writing albums that people are interested in is another matter. At the moment, I'm doing better than I have for two decades, so how long it can go on from here is anybody's guess. I hope that I have the option to choose to continue at some point in the future, rather than it be chosen for me by a lack of record sales and poor attendances at gigs. At the moment, the future looks fairly secure and exciting.
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At last, confirmation I am not going mad. I knew that Basement Jaxx effort had sampled M.E. yet it did not get a mention anywhere else. Gary, do you get to vet a finished track that has sampled one of your songs? Also, how do you feel about Marilyn Manson and the Foo Fighters covering Down In The Park (another absolute classic). And, have you ever met Marilyn Manson?
Phil Spurrier
People have to clear the use of samples before they can release the records. I'm up for an Ivor Novello award with Basement Jaxx next week, so the recognition is there within the business - although arguably less so with the public. This is one of the reasons that the Exposure album is so well timed. It will draw attention to the amount of covers and samples of my stuff that have been used on a number of hit singles and elsewhere. Both the Marilyn Manson and Foo Fighters covers were excellent and, yes, I've met Marilyn several times. He also came on stage with me in Los Angeles a couple of years ago to sing Down In The Park when I was touring America.
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Gary, thanks for a great concert recently at the Manchester Academy. With Pure being what I think is your best album since Telekon, and having received great reviews in the press, does it annoy you that you still never seem to get played on the radio?
Jason Turner
Not at all, I knew when I started to write much heavier material, long before Pure that it was very unlikely to get on the radio. I made that choice and fully understand and accept that radio play is unlikely. It does appear on rock shows every once in a while and the Rip video - a track from the Pure album - has obviously been featured on Kerrang TV and got to No1 on their most-requested chart.
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Do you have plans to do any shows in North America anytime soon?
DominionDame aka Tamatha
I won't be touring at all until the new album is finished which will probably be next spring, apart from three shows in the UK in September. I hope to tour extensively in 2003, all over the world.
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Gary, I'm really pleased for you that after over 20 years you are getting the rewards you deserve, I always thought your music was extra special and would stand the test of time. Looking back to Wembley 1981 was it such a wise decision to announce your retirement, when things were so good? Also, was the choice of Complex as a single a little strange at such an important time in your career. Metal was always going to be a massive single. Thanks for all the great music and live shows.
Mal
Regarding the single, it's always very easy to say what would have been a big single without ever having to prove it. But you may be right. However, Complex got to No6 which is hardly a failure. Also, Complex became generally accepted as the first ever electronic ballad, which I'm quite proud of. Announcing I was going to retire at Wembley was probably the biggest mistake I ever made. Getting out of touring, even for a while, was actually a very good decision but announcing it was a mistake. I should have just done it quietly and then seen how I felt. I overreacted to the pressures of new-found fame and I've been trying to recover from the damage caused by making that decision, ever since.